Thank you to everyone who joined us for November’s Special Symposium edition! Missed it? The recording is available here.
Date: January 23rd, 2026
Time: 14:00 UTC
Registration: Please register here.
Title: Connectivity-based parcellation to map brain organization
Speaker: Dr. Sarah Genon
Abstract: The human brain is often described in terms of discrete regions, yet defining brain atlases remains a central challenge in neuroscience. Connectivity-based parcellation offers a principled framework for identifying functionally coherent regions using a variety of connectivity markers. In this talk, Dr. Sarah Genon will highlight how metabolic connectivity can be leveraged to derive region definitions grounded in metabolic network organization. I will discuss the relevance of these connectivity-based regions for improving our understanding of brain–behavior relationships and characterizing dysfunction in clinical populations.
Dr. Sarah Genon is a cognitive neuroscientist specialized in neuroimaging, machine learning, and the study of brain–behavior relationships. She is a Heisenberg Professor at the Heinrich-Heine University of Dusseldorf and a group leader at the Forschungszentrum Jülich (Germany).
The MCOS promotes rigor in research and resource sharing. We aim to hold MCOS every third Friday of the month, subject to change due to speaker availability. Please stay tuned for MCOS updates and reminders on social media! Thank you!
Each month, we will feature a member of the MCWG and have a brief Q&A!
This month please enjoy our highlight of Prof. Dr. Kristina Herfert, member of the MCWG Steering Committee.
Prof Dr Kristina Herfert is an Associate Professor for Functional and Metabolic Brain Imaging at Werner Siemens Imaging Center, Department of Preclincal Imaging and Radiopharmacy, University of Tübingen, Germany. Her research group’s aim is to develop and apply protocols and methods to assess molecular changes of receptor and protein expression by PET and functional changes by BOLD-fMRI to develop early read-outs of disease progression. Her group’s current research topics are: Hybrid Imaging Using PET and fMRI to Study Brain Functional Connectivity, Quantitative Functional and Molecular Brain Imaging in Animal Models of Neurodegenerative Disorders and PET Radiotracer Development in Brain Neurodegenerative Diseases.
Prof Dr. Kristina Herfert has graciously responded to our feature questionnaire:
What sparked your interest in molecular imaging or led you to focus on research in molecular imaging?
I have always been deeply curious about how the brain works and how it is able to perform such extraordinarily sophisticated functions. As the most complex organ in the human body, the brain has fascinated me for as long as I can remember. While in vitro studies using cell models and tissue have been instrumental in advancing our understanding of molecular disease mechanisms, I have always been particularly drawn to studying the brain in vivo, in its natural, functioning state. Only under in vivo conditions can we truly capture the dynamic interplay between different cell types, receptors, metabolism, and signaling pathways. PET imaging uniquely enables us to investigate these processes noninvasively using a wide range of molecular tracers. The continuous development of new tracers further fuels my interest, as it constantly opens up new possibilities to study brain function and neurological disease at the molecular level.
What is your role in the Molecular Connectivity Working Group, and what have you been contributing to or working on within the group?
I became a member of the Molecular Connectivity Working Group, because I am highly motivated to explore molecular connectivity as a way to study the brain and its neurological disorders beyond conventional PET quantification approaches. A key contribution I hope to bring to the group is my background in preclinical imaging, which allows for the integration of molecular connectivity with methods that offer higher specificity and resolution. In particular, combining molecular connectivity analyses with genetic approaches, such as genetically encoded neurotransmitter sensors, optogenetic manipulation or animal models, can provide deeper insights into specific pathways and molecular mechanisms with superior temporal and spatial resolution. By linking molecular connectivity measures with more invasive, mechanistic readouts, I see strong potential for a multimodal imaging framework that can help validate and better interpret molecular connectivity findings. Within the working group, I am eager to exchange ideas, collaborate internationally, and help advance this integrative perspective.
In what ways do you imagine molecular connectivity will advance our understanding of brain function?
Brain connectivity has fundamentally changed how we think about brain organization by shifting the focus from isolated brain regions to distributed networks. Molecular connectivity has the potential to bring this network perspective to the molecular level. PET imaging enables the investigation of a wide range of processes, including metabolism, neuroinflammation, receptor availability, and neurotransmitter dynamics. Although PET has lower spatial and temporal resolution compared to fMRI, its molecular specificity and sensitivity are unique strengths. Molecular connectivity therefore offers the opportunity to study how molecular processes are coordinated across brain networks, rather than locally confined. While further methodological development is needed to ensure that these network-level molecular measures are robust and biologically meaningful, I strongly believe that molecular connectivity will substantially deepen our understanding of brain function in both health and disease.
What do you think are the most important challenges in current brain connectivity research, or which unsolved/underappreciated issues should the community address?
One of the central challenges in functional connectivity research is that the BOLD signal is an indirect, hemodynamic measure rather than a direct reflection of neuronal activity, making it sensitive to vascular confounds. In addition, connectivity analyses often attempt to relate macroscale network measures to microscale biological processes such as synaptic function, receptor expression, or glial activity. As a result, changes in connectivity can reflect multiple overlapping mechanisms, which complicates interpretation. PET-based molecular connectivity offers greater specificity to particular molecular processes, but is limited by relatively low temporal resolution, making it difficult to capture fast network dynamics. More fundamentally, we still do not fully understand what “connectivity” represents biologically. Molecular coupling may arise from shared receptor expression, similar cell-type composition, common vascular or metabolic constraints, or developmental gradients. Addressing these conceptual and methodological challenges will require integrative multimodal approaches and more preclinical studies that link molecular connectivity measures to known biological mechanisms.
What is your favorite mentoring memory—either a story about a mentor’s impact on you or your impact on a mentee?
One of the most formative mentoring relationships in my career has been with Prof. Bernd Pichler, the director of our institute. His enthusiasm for imaging and his deep curiosity about science have had a lasting influence on my development as a researcher. As a PhD student, I often entered meetings with him feeling discouraged, convinced that my results were not good enough or that my data were insufficient. Yet I almost always left those meetings feeling energized and confident. He has a rare ability to motivate people and to reframe challenges as opportunities for discovery. Equally important, he has always given me a great deal of freedom in pursuing my own research ideas, encouraging independence and creativity. This balance of support, trust, and intellectual freedom has strongly shaped how I think about research and mentorship today.
What scientist or scientific achievement do you most admire?
This is a difficult question, as most scientific advances today are the result of collaborative efforts rather than individual achievements. For that reason, it feels limiting to single out one contemporary scientist. However, when reflecting on the historical context of science, particularly the challenges faced by women, Marie Curie is someone I deeply admire. Her pioneering work laid the foundation for nuclear medicine, and she was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize—remarkably in two different disciplines, physics and chemistry. Her scientific legacy and perseverance continue to make her a powerful role model for women in science.
Molecular Connectivity: Best practices for data analysis
Bordeaux June 19, 2026
8:30 – 08:40 Welcome & Introduction by the organizers
08:40 – 09:10 (30 min) Molecular connectivity in the broader context of fMRI and other modalities
Bratislav Misic, McGill University (Canada)
09:10 – 9:30 (20 min) Introduction to molecular connectivity and nomenclature in the context of the Delphi study
Sharna Jamadar, Monash University (Australia)
9:30 – 9:50 (20 min) Overview of commonly used methods for assessment of molecular connectivity with emphasis on technical aspects that require discussion
Mattia Veronese, University of Padua (Italy)
09:50 – 10:10 (20 min) Preprocessing: Data harmonization, PVC, normalization
Martin Norgaard, University of Copenhagen (Denmark)
10:10 – 10:30 Coffee break
10:30 – 10:50 (20 min) General prerequisites (population heterogeneity, statistical power), minimum number of subjects for inter- and intra-subject estimation
Arianna Sala, Université de Liège (Belgium)
10:50 – 11:10 (20 min) ROI-level estimation metrics: partial or Pearson correlation, Euclidean Similarity
Tommaso Volpi, Yale University (USA)
11:10 – 11:30 (20 min) Voxel-level estimation: SSM-PCA vs. ICA (which method and when? selection of components), seed-based correlation
Matthieu Doyen, Université de Lorraine (France)
11:30 – 11:50 (20 min) Best practices for merging molecular, functional information and clinical info
Vince Calhoun, GSU, GATech, Emory University (USA)
11:50 – 12:10 (20 min) Statistical robustness (bootstrapping, corrections)
Chris Habeck, Columbia University (USA)
12:10 – 13:00 Summary and plan for future steps
The [18F]FDG-PET Workshop
Assessing Brain Glucose Metabolism in Patients with Disorders of Consciousness
From Acquisition to Interpretation aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the use of [18F]FDG-PET imaging in brain-injured patients. Speakers will cover a wide range of topics, including patient preparation, tracer kinetics, data acquisition, image processing and analysis, and the interpretation of clinical results.
The workshop will conclude with a forward-looking presentation on the future of PET imaging and its implications for patients with disorders of consciousness. A major emphasis will be placed on hands-on activities to support practical learning, as well as on the presentation of real clinical cases, fostering discussion and interaction between participants and experts.
The faculty includes Dr. Jitka Annen (University of Ghent), Ir. Claire Bernard (University Hospital of Liège), Dr. Florentin Kucharczak (University of Montpellier), Dr. Arianna Sala (University of Liège), and Dr. Tommaso Volpi (Yale University).
The detailed information of the event and free registration are available here.
📝 Metabolic brain networks in dementia with Lewy bodies: from prodromal to manifest disease stages
In this study, Perovnik et al analysed a large multicenter FDG PET dataset of more the 1,180 participants from 14 tertiary centers with prodromal and manifest dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and normal controls to evaluate the clinical utility of a quantifiable metabolic network biomarker, termed DLB-related pattern (DLBRP).
Read the full study in Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.
Key Findings:
📝 Relationships between local metabolic activity and distributed functional connectivity in major depressive disorder
In this study, Sun and colleagues evaluated the interactions between local activity and distributed connectivity to reveal novel pathobiological signatures of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).
Read the full study in Translational Psychiatry.
Key Findings:
📝 Constructing the human brain metabolic connectome with MR spectroscopic imaging reveals cerebral biochemical organization
In this study, Lucchetti and colleagues using fast, high-resolution 3D whole-brain proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (1H-MRSI), derived a within-subject metabolic connectome in 51 healthy subjects, defined as pairwise correlations among five metabolites (tCr, tNAA, Glx, Ins, Cho) across gray-matter parcels.
Read the full study in Nature Communications.
The MCWG Outreach Council invites you to submit announcements or information about papers, conferences, presentations or other events or news related to brain and molecular connectivity as well as any positions available or job opportunities that you wish to publicize and share with the community!
Please submit any material for consideration by the final day of each month using this form – thank you!
The MCWG is made up of four international and multidisciplinary councils dedicated to promoting molecular connectivity research via dissemination of methods, results, collaboration, and resource sharing (e.g. datasets, tools) within the scientific community. We encourage the neuroscientific community to take an integrative perspective in study of the brain connectome, where various methods including MRI-based techniques, electrophysiological tools, and molecular imaging advance our understanding of the brain. Please find fundamental questions outlined here: “Brain connectomics: time for a molecular imaging perspective?”
Our website can be found here. We also invite you to join the MCWG!
